UFC Fight Night 27's Erik Perez says time off made him better for Mizugaki

INDIANAPOLIS – Erik Perez was starting to get antsy, but he can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

That light will hit Perez (13-4 MMA, 3-0 UFC) on Wednesday when he meets Takeya Mizugaki (17-7-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) in what should prove to be an important fight in the bantamweight division.

Perez and Mizugaki fight on the FOX Sports 2-televised preliminary card of UFC Fight Night 27, which takes place at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The main card airs on FOX Sports 1.

Perez put together an impressive three-fight win streak to start his UFC career with three first-round stoppages. But instead of meeting Johnny Bedford at UFC 159 in April, “Goyito” had to pull out of the bout during fight week when a staph infection sidelined him.

Perez is trying to stay positive about the extra time off, though, even as he is itching to get back in the octagon.

“I feel really, really happy because I’m going to fight,” Perez told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “But going eight months without a fight, it made me better. I’ve been training a lot – particularly things I’m not used to doing. I’ve been working to be better in this eight months, so I’ll come back stronger and better.”

Being stronger and better might wind up proving crucial against Mizugaki, who could arguably be Perez’s toughest opponent to date. At the very least, he’s got the deepest resume of quality opponents he’s faced.

So Perez knows what a win could do for him against the Japanese fighter who fought Miguel Torres for the WEC’s bantamweight belt in his first fight in the United States more than four years ago – losing a “Fight of the Night” decision, but endearing himself to many with his constant come-forward style.

“Mizugaki is no joke, so I’ve been training hard for this fight,” Perez said. “If you want to be the best in the world, you need to fight the best in the world. Mizugaki is the best fighter (for me right now). He has a good name and has fought all the top guys in the division. So it’s a good chance to fight him and win. To fight for the title, I need to get into the Top 10.”

Mizugaki currently is just outside the Top 15 as an Honorable Mention in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA bantamweight rankings. Perez is unranked, but that could change next week with a win over Mizugaki.

It’s part of the nice and steady climb up the ladder for the Mexico-born Perez, who in time could wind up being the face of the UFC in his home country – a country that has been on the UFC’s live-show radar for a while, and one it hopes to finally break into in 2014.

“I want to be in the Top 10 because I want to fight the best guys in my division,” he said. “Right now, the guys in the Top 10 are tough fighters. I need to train more and prepare myself – I need to get better because I want to fight one of these guys.”

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.